Drafted
by The Psyche of Azarath
Summary: Raven is sent to draft the Phantom of Amity Park into the Titans. And takes drastic, and humiliating measures to do so.


Drafted

Originally, Raven assumed that she was the one most often picked to go on missions to draft new Titans because she was the one Robin trusted the most not to blow her cover and scare the new recruit away. Now she saw just how naïve and presumptuous she was. Robin just wanted her to go through this because he knew she was the only one patient enough to go through these trials.

Which is why she hated him very much at this exact moment, as she crouched in a tree in the middle of the night, a pair of binoculars dangling around her neck.

/

It had all started about six months after the masquerade ball. Robin called all the Titans together to deliberate adding a new member. The Phantom of Amity Park. All the Titans had been in the Tower for more than that time. _All _of the Titans in every nook and cranny of the Tower. Melvin, Timmy and Mas y Menos were even playing hide and seek in the cupboards. Raven was more than happy to get out of the congested place, after triple-locking her room with magic. Kid Flash was particularly nosy with her stuff and very persistent.

Her first stop had been to the local ghost hunter's house. It had been rather hard to miss. Raven flattened down her now shoulder-length black hair and fiddled with the short black dress Starfire had lent her. The door swung open and a wide man in a bright orange jumpsuit swung her up into a hug.

"Welcome! I'm Jack Fenton!" he bellowed.

"Hi. I'm Rachel Roth. I believe you were told of my –"

"Oh, yes. MADS! The new recruit is here!" he thundered. He carried Raven to the living room and deposited her on the couch.

A woman in a blue jumpsuit came out of the kitchen and shook Raven's hand firmly.

"Hello dear. My name is Maddie and that's my husband Jack." She introduced.

Jack waved enthusiastically from behind is wife.

Raven nodded. "I hope all that was asked for is ready for me?"

Maddie nodded. "Of course." She said gesturing to a satchel on the kitchen island. "But are you sure you want to do this?" she asked.

"I'm very sure Mrs. Fenton." Raven answered.

A frown marred Maddie's pretty face. "Aren't you a little young to hunt the Phantom? Jack and I have been trying for over a year with little success."

"Age is just a number Mrs. Fenton." Raven said moving to the kitchen and putting on the satchel. "I'm really good at catching things."

"Then you must take our son with you! Sometimes he makes me worry." Jack said.

"What a good idea honey. Danny honey! Come down!"

Danny?

Raven turned to the stairs and saw a strikingly familiar boy descend. His black hair was even shaggier than it was last time but it still masked the same icy blue eyes the way it did six months ago. Raven averted her eyes, cursing her decision to keep her eyes a deep violet.

"What is it Mom?" he asked.

Raven could feel his gaze on her and hoped to Azar the disguise held. The last thing she needed was questions.

"Rachel here wants to try and catch Phantom." Maddie said.

"What!" Raven heard Danny shout.

"Yes. Close your mouth dear."

"And you get to go with her. Give her some tips. Maybe she can show you a thing or two." Jack said.

"Wait. What? Are you sure about this? You're just gonna let her go unsupervised?" Danny asked bewildered.

"She says she's good at catching things. Now hurry up dear, you're wasting her time."

/

"So, where are you from?"

"Far away."

"I see. How far exactly? Because you seem awfully familiar and I'm pretty sure I've never seen you here bef-"

"Where are you taking me exactly?"

Danny had been walking with Raven for close to thirty minutes. She had since used that time to check her ghost hunting gear inventory. A soup thermos and nothing else. Seriously? A soup thermos against a level 7 ghost? They've got to be kidding.

"The mall." Danny said.

Raven turned to him. "I'm sorry, what?"

"I'm taking you to the mall."

"Why? What good could that do?" Raven asked.

"Ghosts like to attack the mall. Plenty of paranoid humans to terrify." Danny replied.

"And it's still open?" Raven asked in surprise.

"Gotta love Mayor Masters." Danny said. Raven detected a hint of hatred in that.

"I take it you don't like the mayor?" she asked.

"You can't like everyone." Danny said evasively as they entered the mall.

Danny directed her over to a food court and they sat down.

"So, what now?" Raven asked as they sat across from each other.

"We wait." Danny said. "It's almost noon. Some ghosts usually like to hit during the lunch rush. Almost like clockwork. In the meantime, we can make small talk."

"I'm not a fan of small talk." Raven deadpanned.

Danny ploughed on regardless. "You know, I can't shake the feeling that I've met you somewhere before. A party maybe?"

"I don't do parties." Raven said.

"I thought so. You seem like a girl with standards. Balls maybe?" he asked.

It was when Raven heard his tone that she knew he already knew she was the same person from the ball or at least he suspected it.

"I've never been to a ball before in my life." Raven said evenly.

For a long time there was a staring match between them. Both were certain of the truth but neither wanted to say it due to their own pride. Suddenly, their concentration was broken by a wall to their right being blasted in. The mall instantly broke into chaos, people scattering to the nearest exits. Through the dust, Raven could barely make out the image of a mechanized ghost with flaming green hair. She reached for her satchel, figuring she would give the soup thermos a try. Before she could get a grip on it, Danny grabbed her hand and rushed her to a far corner. Raven yanked her hand out of his grip with a scowl.

"What was that for?" she asked.

Danny looked at her like she was crazy. "That's what you do when you see ghosts. You run." He said.

"In case you've forgotten, I came to this town for a ghost. And if my suspicions are correct, he should be here any minute." Raven said.

Danny glared at her. "You'll never catch him, you know?" he said with a smirk.

"I haven't failed at catching anything yet." Raven said confidently.

"Well. I don't know about you, but I'm going to run for my life like a rational being."

Raven rolled her eyes at him as he shot off. She turned her attention back to the mechanized ghost, who was now smashing tables and calling for a 'whelp' to come out so he can have its pelt. Suddenly, a black and white streak came out of nowhere and slammed into the ghost, knocking him into an opposite wall.

"You really need to get a better hobby Skulker." Phantom taunted.

Skulker poked his head out of the rubble and smiled. "Ah, the battle begins." He said. He flew out of the rubble and slammed into Phantom, initiating a mid-air wrestling match.

Raven took the opportunity to move closer to them, until she was directly underneath the brawl. She pulled out the sleek metal thermos and tried to get a clear shot at Phantom. Her arms moved in quick, jerky movement as she followed the fight and tried to get a good shot at Phantom. Before she could get a clear shot, Skulker pulled out a strange gun and shot what looked like green lightning at Phantom. Phantom screamed as his body convulsed with electricity. He fell from the air like a rock, straight at Raven. Instinctively, Raven ran out of the way as Phantom crashed into the spot she had been in just moments before with a gasp of pain.

Gasp?

Pain?

Phantom got up slowly and his neon green eyes widened when he saw her. "What are you doing here?! It's dangerous!"

Raven saw he was, oddly enough for a ghost, in great pain. She fought off the urge to heal him.

"You're hurt." She said.

"Not as much as you'll be if you don't get outta here!"

"I will not-"

Raven was cut off by a metal claw grabbing her by her arm and hoisting her up into the air and level with Skulker's glowing green eyes.

"Who is this whelp? A friend?" he asked.

Raven narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm not his friend. I'm hunting him."

Skulker let out a choked laugh. "You're kidding, right?" he said. "The Red Huntress I understand, she's fairly good and pretty intimidating. But this? She's just a child!"

"Do _not _make the mistake of underestimating me." Raven said lowly.

Skulker chuckled. "Feisty child, aren't you?"

"Let her go Skulker!" Phantom yelled flying up to him.

"Alright." Skulker said impassively. He pressed a button on his suit and the metal claw released Raven, sending her plummeting to the ground and right past Phantom's shocked face. Phantom groaned and flew down and caught Raven before she hit the ground.

"I told you this was dangerous! Why are you still here?" he asked angrily.

"I need to talk to you." Raven said calmly

"Talk? You risked your life just for a talk?!" Phantom yelled.

Skulker was looking down at them, intrigued.

"Are boys always so narrow-minded? Even when they are dead?" Raven asked with her hands on her hips. "If you would just calm down and let me explain why I came all the way to this soap dish of a town-"

"Oh, so now you're insulting my hometown? What kind of crazy chick are you?!" Phantom raved.

Skulker floated down to their level. "If this is a bad time, I can always come back after you finish bickering with your girlfriend." He said.

Phantom gripped his white hair and Raven narrowed her eyes.

"She is not my girlfriend!" Phantom hollered.

"Well, okay. Same time in two weeks." Skulker said as he left.

"Finally." Raven said with an exasperated sigh. "Now, I'm actually here to-"

She was cut off when Phantom rather abruptly flew away without turning to look at Raven at all.

"Well. This is going to be harder than I thought."

/

She hadn't spotted Phantom for two weeks after that. She would always try her hardest to get to the scene of a ghost attack but she always got there long after Phantom left. Admittedly, sleeping in a cramped hotel room and constantly being in contact with the Fenton family was trying her patience.

So Raven took drastic measures.

It was easy to get his attention, really. All she had to do was show up at the old abandoned football stadium where he normally arranges his stuff.

"I have a proposition for you. It involves Phantom, your nemesis." Raven said to him.

"Ah, yes. I'm listening."

"I understand you want to capture him."

"All ghosts do."

"Well, I have the perfect plan. The Fentons gave me this soup thermos." Raven say pulling it out.

"Put that thing away before you accidentally turn it on. It's cramped in there."

Raven looked at the thermos. It actually works?

"Sorry. So as I said, you pretend to have captured me and after Phantom defeats you, I suck him into this and we both go our own way."

"What makes you so sure he'll defeat me?"

"Because you'll let him."

Silence.

"So, will you do it?"

"I just remembered something very important."

Raven sighed. "What?"

"I am the BOX GHOST! I do not help little girls with ambitions bigger than any of my many boxes. You're delusional!"

Raven blinked. "Are you serious?"

"BEWARE!" then he vanished.

Raven gripped her hair, sank to her knees, and let out a scream of frustration.

/

Those events, amongst others, led Raven to her current predicament.

She figured that the best way to capture a ghost such as Phantom was to pounce on him when he least expected it. So she took to studying his late night patrol patterns and realized he liked to nap under a tree in the park. It was strange for a normal ghost to sleep at all. Then again, Raven now knew Phantom wasn't a normal ghost.

So now here she was, crouching in a tree in the middle of the night.

She checked her watch and lifted the binoculars to her eyes. Suddenly, a familiar white streak pierced through the night sky. The streak slowed significantly and came to rest on the ground directly under Raven. He leaned against the tree and sighed.

"Another night without a ghost. Odd. These guys seriously make me paranoid when they don't show up. Phantom said.

He yawned and made himself more comfortable. "Oh well, better get some sleep or else I'll be a real ghost tomorrow."

When Raven was sure he was asleep, she slowly removed the binoculars and picked up the thermos. Moving ever so slowly, she positioned herself over Phantom and leaped. She landed right on Phantom's lap, startling him awake. His neon green eyes widened when he saw her.

"You!" he exclaimed.

Raven grinned and pressed the button on the thermos. Nothing happened.

Now it was Phantom's turn to grin. "Looks like the Fenton's gave you a fresh thermos. Sorry crazy, but you need and external energy to activate it and no ghost in their right mind will help you." He said smugly.

Raven looked from the thermos to him. "External energy, huh?"

Phantom's look turned fearful when he saw Raven's purple eyes turn a crackling white.

"What are you-"

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"

With a flash of black energy from the thermos, Phantom was sucked inside.

"What was that?! Who are you?" he asked from inside the thermos.

"I am Raven, of the Teen Titans and you are about to be taken to Jump City to be drafted." She said finally morphing into her comfortable old look, cloak and all.

Phantom delayed before answering. "Me? The Teen Titans want me?" he asked in awe. Then he seemed to come to his senses. "Hey! Don't I get a say in this? Or some time to prepare at least?"

Raven shook the thermos, reveling in Phantom's screams of discomfort. "Maybe if you had listened to me instead of flying off like a jerk that day at the mall, maybe you would've had more time. They expect you for your initiation tests in two days."

"Two days!"

"Yes. Now be quiet. I've got a long way to teleport and I do not need you nagging in my ear the whole way." Raven said attaching the thermos to her belt.

"But you don't under-"

"AZARATH METRION ZINTHOS!" Raven shouted!

Her body to the shape of a pure black raven. With a caw, the raven took off into the direction of California, zigzagging frequently.

"Quit it!" Phantom shouted from the thermos, feeling nauseous.

Inside the raven, Raven smirked.

/

Dear fans,

Here is part to of the four part DPTT one-shot series that has no name. I won't write the other parts till June. I go to school tomorrow.

Your author,

Psyche.


End file.
